It was a bright morning, where the sun shone warmly and all things flourished. Governor Karajan of the planet Phira, just as he had done for the previous two days since returning to Phira, rose very late from his soft, luxurious bed. After being dressed by his servants, he proceeded to the bright hall to begin his breakfast.
However, today had barely begun when Governor Karajan had just seated himself at the dining table. The governor’s secretary, who hadn’t disturbed Karajan’s peaceful life for quite some time, suddenly burst through the doors of the governor’s mansion.
The secretary rushed forward in great strides, reaching Karajan’s side as the governor sat in stunned surprise. Leaning in closely, the secretary whispered a few words into Karajan’s ear. Immediately afterward, Karajan sprayed the milk he had just sipped from his mouth.
“What… what did you say?!” Governor Karajan shouted in shock, leaping to his feet so violently that the chair beneath him was flung aside.
“I’m also quite shocked, Governor,” the poor secretary replied, wiping milk from his face with an embarrassed expression. “No one expected Governor Temiso to act so decisively. Just two days after our return, he has already sent the Academy of Almichus’s return delegation.”
“That bastard Temiso!” Karajan’s face turned deathly pale as he slammed the table furiously. “He’s trying to embarrass me in front of the Emperor and make me lose face!”
Sighing helplessly, the secretary could only nod repeatedly while wiping away the spittle that had sprayed onto his face from Karajan’s outburst.
“Hmph! Hmph!” Karajan angrily circled the dining table once before finally calming himself. Returning to face his secretary, Karajan glared at him darkly.
“Well then! If soldiers come, we’ll meet them with generals; if water comes, we’ll stop it with earth. If Temiso dares to show up, I have nothing to fear. Go! Prepare the aircraft. We’re leaving immediately for the Academy of Themis.”
“Yes, Governor!” The secretary bowed hastily and fled as fast as he could.
In any case, just as chaos erupted within Governor Karajan’s residence, a spacecraft traveling from Casares to Phira finally reached its destination after a three-day journey.
“Damn it, we’ve arrived at Phira!” As soon as the ship landed at Babylon Spaceport, a group of men, whose muscular builds were intimidating, exited the vessel with excited smiles, each puffing on premium Casares cigars.
“Hmph! This city wrapped in metal really grates on me!”
Glancing disdainfully at the city of Babylon before them, the muscular men chuckled coldly among themselves. Leading the group was a tough man with a buzzcut, his entire body wrapped in a long black cloak.
The heavy luggage that would be extremely burdensome for ordinary people seemed weightless in the leader’s hands. He casually slung a massive suitcase over his shoulder, scanned the faces of his companions, and without a word, strode into the streets of Babylon.
On the street, pedestrians instinctively stepped aside whenever they encountered this group of formidable men. Two young men who had been idly loitering nearby, clearly hooligans, widened their eyes in shock at the sight of them and quickly vanished into the maze of narrow, interconnected alleys flanking the street.
Undoubtedly, this group of strikingly muscular men walking through Babylon’s streets were the bounty warriors from Casares.
“Hey, Shura, have you decided yet? When are we going to the Babylon Arena? Also, are we being too conspicuous walking through the streets like this? This is their territory, you know! Did you see those two guys run off after seeing us? I bet Babylon will know we’re here before noon,” said a black-haired youth walking closely behind Shura. With a meaningful glance toward the direction the two hooligans had fled, his meaning was clear: with just a nod from Shura, he could easily catch those two and prevent them from delivering the news to the Babylon Arena.
“Are they Babylon Arena spies? No need to bother with them!” Shura coldly shook his head, signaling the youth to relax. “This time, let the Babylon Arena bounty warriors prepare themselves thoroughly. If Babylon can’t send out their strongest lineup, it won’t be fun even if we win.”
“Heh! So you really plan to stir up the entire Phira Arena,” the black-haired youth grinned broadly, exchanging glances with the other warriors, his expression a mix of tension and excitement. “By the way, isn’t Sister Angele supposed to be joining us on this mission with the Hermit? Why haven’t we seen him yet? Also, his friend Zhang Wen went with the Almichus Academy delegation.”
“Don’t worry. The Hermit just has some other matters to attend to for now. He’s not the kind of person who talks without action. He’ll show up when the time is right. Besides… maybe this time the Hermit will surprise us again.” With these calm words, Shura resumed walking forward.
Not long after this group of eye-catching men left the spaceport, the Almichus Academy delegation also disembarked from their ship and set foot on Phira.
Among the Almichus Academy delegation, many students were no strangers to Phira. For example, among the students and teachers of the Psychic Arts Department, aside from Vicki, whom Xiaoxi secretly called “Glasses Girl,” the rest were all veterans who had participated in previous delegations.
Compared to the Psychic Arts Department, Zhang Wen’s Physical Arts Department had far less competition experience. Whether it was Zack and Cloud, who were officially part of the Physical Arts Department, or Amelis, temporarily “borrowed” from the Psychic Arts Department, none of them had ever been to Phira before. The only member of the Physical Arts Department who had previously visited Phira was actually Xiaoxi, whom Zhang Wen jokingly referred to as “the permanent benchwarmer who will never see action!”
Babylon City, the capital of Phira, had its spaceport built atop the highest mountain in the city, Xian Mountain. Therefore, as soon as the delegation stepped out of the semi-enclosed spaceport, the entire city of Babylon unfolded before their eyes.
Frankly speaking, the first sight of Babylon left Zhang Wen with a sudden sense of awe, as if he had abruptly stepped from a remote mountain village into a modern metropolis.
Steel skyscrapers over a hundred meters tall dotted the landscape. On neatly paved roads, various psychokinetic vehicles flowed like water among the bustling crowds. Numerous psychokinetic spacecraft buzzed like busy bees, darting between the metallic “flowers” of the city.
“Wow! Phira is truly prosperous! In terms of development, it’s at least nine leagues ahead of Casares!” Amelis, nearly stunned into silence, couldn’t help but softly exclaim as she turned her head rapidly, taking in the surroundings.
Unconsciously comparing Phira with Casares in her mind, Amelis couldn’t help but think that if she were Princess Sophia, she would definitely choose Phira.
“That’s for sure. Phira and Casares are completely different. Casares is a resource-based planet, developed by the Empire for only two or three hundred years. Phira, however, is a traditional administrative planet, developed since the very founding of the Empire over seven thousand years ago. It’s the most developed core territory in the southern border of the Empire!” Zack also shook his head in admiration.
Likewise, Cloud, who was visiting Phira for the first time, also showed signs of being moved by the scene before him.
“Hey, Cloud, why aren’t you saying anything? What do you think of this place?” Zack nudged Cloud with his elbow. “I remember you’re from Aslan, the capital of the Commercial Union, right? Aslan is also one of the top administrative planets in the southern border!”
“Hehe, how should I put it?” Cloud finally turned his head, smiling calmly. “It’s truly worthy of being a core stronghold of the Empire. In terms of development, I don’t think any planet in the southern border can rival Phira. Take this Babylon City, for example—it may not be as lively as Aslan, but its strict orderliness is exactly the style of the Empire.”
“Hmm…” Listening to Cloud’s analysis, Amelis and Zack nodded in agreement. Although Joliet wanted to say a few words in defense of Casares, looking at the city before them, which could only be described as “magnificent and grand,” she found herself too dispirited to utter a single word.
“Alright, you guys! Don’t go praising others and belittling yourselves!” Zhang Wen’s gaze swept over Joliet’s face, and he smiled as he approached his three students, playfully patting each of their heads in turn.
“Phira is indeed prosperous, but that doesn’t mean Themis Academy is stronger than our Almichus Academy. In fact, I think it might be better to be a student at Almichus. After all, don’t you feel that this city gives off a very tense and oppressive atmosphere?”
“Hmm… that’s true,” Amelis mused thoughtfully, resting her chin on her hand after Zhang Wen finished speaking.
“Now that you mention it… I suddenly feel that Babylon really is somewhat similar to my dad’s Shinra Fortress. If we were to study here, wouldn’t it be just like undergoing training at the Shinra Fortress?” As Zack spoke, he shivered involuntarily. Apparently, the training at Shinra Fortress had left him with some “deep” memories.
“Oh! Didn’t know you could be so eloquent!” Xiaoxi sneaked up with a sly grin at some point.
“Hmph! You little brat, don’t get smart with me. Get your stuff ready—we’re going to visit Themis Academy!” Zhang Wen took the opportunity to ruffle Xiaoxi’s hair a couple of times before quickly catching up with the Psychic Arts Department group.
Since Almichus Academy’s return visit was extremely sudden, Themis Academy naturally couldn’t prepare a formal welcoming ceremony like in previous years. In fact, even if Themis Academy had had the time to send a car, they probably wouldn’t have bothered. Governor Karajan, already furious at these uninvited guests, certainly had no intention of giving them a warm reception.
However, no matter how angry Governor Karajan was about Almichus Academy’s surprise visit, Themis Academy still had to uphold basic etiquette. When the Almichus delegation arrived at the gates of Themis Academy via psychokinetic vehicles, the principal of Themis, Lorlock, still sent several academy instructors to offer a symbolic welcome.
Of course, everyone from Almichus knew that beneath those instructors’ smiling faces, their true thoughts were probably anything but “welcoming.”
After seeing off the instructors who had come to “welcome” them, the Almichus delegation was then granted their first “free exploration time” at Themis Academy.
“Mr. Zhang, from now on, you’d better be careful. Don’t wander off alone—try to stay with the Psychic Arts Department group at all times,” said the head instructor of the Psychic Arts Department, Kajelena, as soon as they entered the campus of Themis Academy.
“Oh? Why is that?” Zhang Wen looked at Kajelena, surprised by her commanding tone.
“Every year when Almichus visits Themis, there’s an unwritten tradition at Themis. Before the official competition begins, they’ll try every underhanded method to target our teachers when they’re alone. In the past two or three years, we’ve always had a few instructors who ended up humiliated by them.”
Although Kajelena didn’t directly mention the Physical Arts Department, from the distrust in her eyes, Zhang Wen could already tell that the instructors who had been humiliated by Themis in previous years were likely mostly from the Physical Arts Department.
Seeing Kajelena’s expression—severe yet laced with disdain—Zhang Wen’s lips slowly curled upward. Anyone familiar with Zhang Wen would know, just by seeing this expression, that he was truly angry.
However, this time, what angered Zhang Wen wasn’t just Kajelena’s condescending attitude, but also the actions of Instructor Fox, someone Zhang Wen knew all too well from the Physical Arts Department of Almichus Academy.
Zhang Wen had never held a good opinion of Fox, who was practically a sycophant to Instructor Xin. Yet he never expected that, even under the strict orders issued by Governor Temiso this time, Fox still dared to play petty tricks on him!
Since Fox had been the Physical Arts Department’s leading instructor on last year’s visit, he certainly knew about Themis Academy’s traditions. Yet, when Zhang Wen asked Fox before departing for Phira, “Are there any issues I should be aware of?” that bastard Fox hadn’t said a single word about it!
It was obvious that Fox had intentionally withheld from Zhang Wen the “welcome tradition” of Thoth Academy. That guy just wanted Zhang Wen to suffer a major humiliation at Thoth Academy, so he could show Governor Temiso that he wasn’t the only fool who could be targeted there.
Unfortunately for Fox, this time his scheming was in vain.
In fact, even if Zhang Wen had learned about Thoth Academy’s “welcome tradition” from Instructor Katerina, he still couldn’t do as she requested—staying with the Psychokinetic Division the entire time. Because aside from Almice Academy, Zhang Wen had another equally important mission to complete with the Bounty Fighters.
“So, Instructor Katerina wants us from the Physical Combat Division to hide behind your Psychokinetic Division?” Zhang Wen smiled and asked in return.
“If Teacher Zhang insists on putting it that way, I don’t mind. Last year, Fox, the instructor from the Physical Combat Division, allowed his students to be treated very badly. I remember when Fox returned, Governor Temiso was furious and nearly expelled him from Almice Academy. I don’t want the same thing to happen this year. I think Teacher Zhang understands what I mean, right?” Katerina replied with a stern, expressionless face, waiting for Zhang Wen’s response.
Faced with Katerina, who clearly had no trust in him, Zhang Wen felt there was little he could say.
If Zhang Wen didn’t have his mission with the Bounty Fighters and if Katerina had been more patient and understanding, perhaps his natural laziness would have kicked in and he might have simply followed Katerina’s advice, hiding behind the Psychokinetic Division and taking it easy.
But now… not only would Zhang Wen never abandon his duties at the Kemal Colosseum just because he was worried about being targeted by Thoth Academy, but he also couldn’t accept Katerina’s condescending attitude.
A martial artist should have a forgiving heart, able to tolerate unintentional offenses, but a martial artist must never accept humiliation. This was a saying from a respected martial artist who had once guided Zhang Wen back on Earth. It had become Zhang Wen’s motto and a lifelong belief.
“I completely understand Instructor Katerina’s concern. However, I’m not Instructor Fox. I will handle things according to my own judgment. Please rest assured, Instructor Katerina. No matter what happens, I will never bring shame to Almice Academy.” Zhang Wen smiled casually, then turned and waved to Zack and the other two Physical Combat Division members.
Zhang Wen wasn’t about to get into a petty argument with Katerina over a bit of disdain. However, he also refused to silently accept Katerina’s arrangement. So, the best way for Zhang Wen to handle it was naturally to simply ignore her, as he did now.
“Hmph!” Katerina glared at Zhang Wen’s retreating back and finally could only let out an angry snort.
It was clear that Fox deliberately didn’t inform Zhang Wentai about the “welcome” tradition at Themist Academy. This guy wanted Zhang to take a big fall at Themist Academy too, just to prove to Governor Termiso that he wasn’t the only fool who could be messed with at the academy. Unfortunately for Fox, his plan backfired this time.
In fact, even if Zhang had learned about the “welcome tradition” from Katerina, he still couldn’t stay with the psychic group as she had requested. Besides his duties at Almytheus Academy, Zhang had an equally important mission to complete as a bounty fighter.
“Does Instructor Katerina mean for our physical combat group to hide behind your psychic group?” Zhang asked with a smile, turning the question back on Katerina.
“If you insist on putting it that way, then so be it. Last year, Instructor Fox, who led the physical combat group, was thoroughly humiliated. I remember Governor Termiso was so furious when Fox returned that he nearly expelled him from Almytheus Academy. I don’t want a repeat of that this year. I trust you understand my point, Instructor Zhang?” Katerina replied sternly, her face expressionless as she awaited Zhang’s response.
Faced with Katerina’s lack of trust, Zhang felt there was little to say. If Zhang didn’t have his responsibilities as a bounty fighter and if Katerina had been more patient and persuasive, perhaps Zhang’s laziness might have kicked in, and he might have followed her advice to stay behind the psychic group and take it easy.
But now… not only was it impossible for Zhang to neglect his duties at the Khemir Arena out of fear of Themist Academy’s schemes, but Katerina’s arrogant attitude alone was enough for Zhang to reject her suggestion outright.
A warrior must have a generous heart, capable of tolerating unintentional slights, but a warrior must not endure humiliation. This was a lesson Zhang had learned from a respected martial artist back on Earth, and it had become his motto and lifelong creed.
“I fully understand your concerns, Instructor Katerina. However, I am not Instructor Fox. I know how to handle myself. Rest assured, no matter what happens, I will not bring shame to Almytheus Academy,” Zhang said casually, then turned and beckoned to Zack and the other members of the physical combat group.
Zhang wasn’t about to let Katerina’s slight derail his focus, but neither would he meekly accept her arrangements. The best course of action was to leave her behind, as he did now.
“Hmph!” Katerina glared at Zhang’s retreating figure, finally letting out an angry snort.
Although Katerina held a high-ranking position as the head instructor of the psychic group at Almytheus Academy, within the visiting delegation, she and Zhang were equals—she had no authority to issue orders to him.
“Irina!” After a while, Katerina could no longer contain her frustration. She called over Irina, another instructor from the psychic group and her star pupil.
“Instructor Katerina,” Irina responded, having been nearby during the earlier conversation. She knew exactly what Katerina needed from her.
“Keep an eye on him. Report any issues immediately. Governor Termiso’s orders and the honor of Almytheus Academy must not be compromised by this man.”
“Understood. I’ll keep a close watch on him,” Irina replied with a cold smile, nodding in the direction Zhang had left.
Meanwhile, Zhang, having left with Zack and the others, quickly returned to the hotel arranged by Themist Academy.
Zhang’s refusal to follow Katerina’s plan wasn’t out of disregard for her warnings but because of the pride he must uphold as a warrior. In fact, after learning about Themist Academy’s so-called “tradition,” Zhang had been contemplating his next move.
Zhang was certain that Themist Academy would stoop to using underhanded tactics against the physical combat instructors from Almytheus Academy. He even suspected that if Almytheus’s physical combat group hadn’t been so weak, they might have already done so.
When students use unfair tactics against each other, even if they win, they are despised. But using students against instructors is a different matter entirely.
Even if several students gang up on an instructor or force them into a battle of attrition, no one would blame the students for being underhanded. And if the students lose, it wouldn’t tarnish their reputation. But if the instructor loses, no one would care how many students were involved—they’d simply say, “What a useless instructor, can’t even handle students. How can they be qualified to teach?”
This explains why Governor Termiso was so furious last year when Fox was humiliated by Themist Academy’s students, nearly expelling him from Almytheus Academy.
“So, I guess this is a case of ‘knowing there’s a tiger on the mountain, yet heading straight for it,'” Zhang mused as he changed into casual clothes in his hotel room, gazing out at the students in Themist uniforms bustling along the academy streets.
Zhang could clearly sense at least two groups lurking in the shadows of the hallway, quietly watching his room’s door.
If I walk out the front door, it’ll undoubtedly cause a stir. But what would happen then? Zhang thought with a smirk, suddenly pushing open the back window of the hotel, pressing a hand on the windowsill, and leaping out.
As Zhang evaded the spies in the hallway and slipped away from the hotel, two young men with strange tattoos and wild hairstyles were sprinting through the winding alleys between Babylon City’s towering buildings.
“Reyna, have they caught up yet?” asked the thinner, long-haired man, finally out of breath after several turns. He stopped, crouching and panting as he turned to the short-haired man beside him.
“Don’t think so. Whew…” Reyna gasped, leaning against the wall and glancing nervously behind them. Seeing no pursuers, he wiped the sweat from his forehead.
It was clear that Fox deliberately didn’t inform Zhang Wentai about the “welcome” tradition at Themist Academy. This guy wanted Zhang to take a big fall at Themist Academy too, just to prove to Governor Termiso that he wasn’t the only fool who could be messed with at the academy. Unfortunately for Fox, his plan backfired this time.
In fact, even if Zhang had learned about the “welcome tradition” from Katerina, he still wouldn’t have been able to stay with the psychic arts group as she had suggested. Besides his duties at Almeus Academy, Zhang had an equally important mission to complete as a bounty fighter.
“Does Instructor Katerina mean for our physical arts group to hide behind your psychic arts group?” Zhang asked with a smile, turning the question back on Katerina.
“If you insist on putting it that way, then so be it. Last year, Instructor Fox, who led the physical arts group, was thoroughly humiliated. I still remember how Governor Termiso nearly expelled him from Almeus Academy after he returned. I don’t want a repeat of that this year. I trust you understand my point, Instructor Zhang?” Katerina replied sternly, her expression unreadable as she awaited Zhang’s response.
Faced with Katerina’s lack of trust, Zhang felt there was little to say. If Zhang didn’t have his bounty fighter mission and if Katerina had been more patient and persuasive, perhaps Zhang’s laziness might have kicked in, and he would have followed her advice to stay behind the psychic arts group.
But now… not only was it impossible for Zhang to abandon his duties at the Khemel Arena just because he was worried about being targeted by Themist Academy, but Katerina’s overbearing attitude alone was enough for Zhang to reject her suggestion outright.
A martial artist must have a generous heart and tolerate unintentional offenses, but a martial artist must never be humiliated. This was a lesson Zhang had learned from a respected martial artist back on Earth, and it had become his lifelong motto and belief.
“I fully understand your point, Instructor Katerina. However, I am not Instructor Fox. I know my limits and will handle things accordingly. Rest assured, no matter what happens, I will not bring shame to Almeus Academy,” Zhang said casually, then turned and beckoned to Zack and the other members of the physical arts group.
Zhang wasn’t about to let Katerina’s slight provoke him into a pointless confrontation, but neither would he meekly accept her arrangements. The best course of action was to simply leave her behind, as he did now.
“Hmph!” Katerina glared at Zhang’s retreating figure, finally letting out an angry snort.
Although Katerina held a high-ranking position as the head instructor of the psychic arts group at Almeus Academy, within the visiting delegation, she and Zhang were equals as the respective leaders of their groups. She had no authority to issue orders to him!
“Irina!” After a while, Katerina finally couldn’t hold back and called over another instructor from the psychic arts group, her prized student.
“Instructor Katerina,” Irina responded, having been nearby during the conversation. She knew exactly what Katerina wanted from her.
“Keep an eye on him. Report any issues immediately. Governor Termiso’s orders and the honor of Almeus Academy must not be tarnished by this man.”
“Understood. I’ll keep a close watch on him,” Irina replied with a cold smile, nodding in the direction Zhang had left.
Meanwhile, Zhang, after leaving with Zack and the others, quickly returned to the hotel arranged by Themist Academy.
Zhang’s refusal to follow Katerina’s plan was rooted in his pride as a martial artist, but that didn’t mean he dismissed her warnings entirely. In fact, after learning about Themist Academy’s so-called “tradition,” Zhang had been pondering the situation.
He was certain that Themist Academy would stoop to using underhanded tactics to attack the physical arts instructors from Almeus Academy. In fact, if it weren’t for the physical arts group’s weakness, Zhang suspected they might have already done so.
When students target other students, using unfair methods would only bring shame upon the victor. But when students target instructors, it’s a different story.
Even if a group of students forced an instructor into a battle of attrition or ganged up on them, no one would blame the students for being underhanded. And even if the students lost, it wouldn’t harm their reputation. But if the instructor lost, no one would care how many students were involved. They’d simply say, “What a useless instructor, can’t even handle students. How can they be qualified to teach?”
This explained why Governor Termiso had been so furious last year when Fox was humiliated by Themist Academy students, nearly expelling him from Almeus Academy.
“So, I guess I’m ‘walking into the tiger’s den knowingly’…” Zhang mused as he changed into casual clothes in his hotel room, gazing out at the students in Themist uniforms bustling along the academy streets.
Zhang could clearly sense at least two groups lurking in the hallway, quietly watching his room’s door.
If I walk out the front door, it will undoubtedly cause a commotion. But what would happen then? Zhang thought with a smirk, suddenly pushing open the back window of the hotel, pressing one hand on the windowsill, and leaping out.
As Zhang slipped past the spies in the hallway and quietly left the hotel, two young men with strange tattoos and wild hairstyles were sprinting through the winding alleys between Babylon City’s towering buildings.
“Reyner, are they still chasing us?” the thinner, long-haired man asked, panting heavily after several turns, finally stopping to catch his breath.
“Shouldn’t be… huff…” Reyner, the short-haired man, also gasped for air. He leaned against the wall, anxiously glancing back, and seeing no pursuers, wiped the sweat from his forehead.
“Yes, Instructor Katerina.” Irina had been standing nearby while Katerina spoke with Zhang Wen and clearly understood what her mentor needed her to do.
“Keep an eye on him. Report any issues to me immediately. Governor Temiso’s orders and Almice Academy’s honor must not be ruined by this man.”
“Understood. Don’t worry, I’ll watch him closely.” Irina smirked coldly and nodded toward the direction Zhang Wen had left.
While Katerina and Irina plotted in secret, Zhang Wen himself had already left with Zack and the others, returning directly to the inn arranged for them by Thoth Academy.
Zhang Wen’s refusal to accept Katerina’s arrangement was only because of the pride that every martial artist must uphold—it didn’t mean he treated her warning lightly. In fact, after learning about Thoth Academy’s so-called “tradition,” Zhang Wen had been thinking carefully.
Zhang Wen was absolutely certain that Thoth Academy would definitely stoop to underhanded tactics to target instructors from Almice’s Physical Combat Division. In fact, if Almice’s Physical Combat Division hadn’t been so weak to begin with, Zhang Wen would have suspected that such tactics had already been employed long ago.
Because when students fight students, if one side resorts to unfair means, even if they win, they will only be despised. However, using students to target instructors was a completely different matter.
Even if several students forced an instructor into a series of duels or even surrounded and attacked him, no one would accuse the students of being despicable. Moreover, even if the students lost, it wouldn’t damage their reputations. But if the instructor lost while being surrounded, people wouldn’t care how many students he had faced. They would simply say, “Ah! This instructor must be completely useless if he can’t even beat a few students. What qualifications does he have to be an instructor?”
This also explained why Governor Temiso had been so furious at Fox last year after he was humiliated by Thoth Academy’s students, nearly expelling him from Almice Academy.
“So, I guess this is a case of ‘knowing there’s a tiger on the mountain, still heading toward it’…” Back in his inn room, Zhang Wen changed into casual clothes and gazed out the window at the students in Thoth uniforms walking along the academy street, a faint smile on his face.
Zhang Wen could clearly sense that at least two groups were hiding in the corridor outside, secretly watching his room door.
“If I walk out the front door, there’s no doubt it would cause a commotion. But then again, what would happen if I did that?” Zhang Wen’s lips curled with interest. Suddenly, he pushed open the back window of the inn, pressed one hand on the windowsill, and leapt out.
At the exact moment Zhang Wen evaded the spies in the corridor and quietly left the inn, two young men with strange tattoos and messy hairstyles were sprinting through the narrow alleys between the tall buildings of Babylon City.
“Brother Reina, have those guys caught up yet?” After running through several turns, the thinner, long-haired man finally ran out of breath. He stopped, crouched down, and gasped toward the short-haired man beside him.
“Not yet, I think. Huh… huh…” Reina, the short-haired man, also panted heavily. He leaned against the wall and nervously glanced behind. Seeing no one following, he angrily wiped the sweat from his forehead.
Tai Sui Yellow Amulet Paper FuLu Taoist Love Talisman Traditional Chinese Spiritual Charm Attracting Love Protecting Marriage